Rapists in Blue – About the Vile Deeds of UN troops

We live in the era of imperialism. This means that some very rich countries accumulate vast wealth through the exploitation and oppression of the population of the poor countries of the world. These very rich, imperialist countries are, among other things, characterized by their incessant military activity. This includes not only their leading imperialist wars fought in countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, Mali, and Chad; it also involves their repeated military interventions and the permanent stationing of their soldiers, or those of “allied” lackey regimes, in poor semi-colonial countries. When deployed in the semi-colonies these combat forces and “auxiliaries” are inarguably serving the interests of the exploitive ruling classes of the imperialist countries; thus, in this capacity, the soldiers have a very definite, exploitive role model to follow. As a result, the behavior of these troops towards the poor and oppressed is often deplorable. No wonder, then that, among other forms of aggression, acts of rape of the local population by these soldiers is on the agenda; so much so that, among the world’s oppressed semi-colonies, UN peacekeepers have a gained a not unjustified reputation as rapists. Last year more than 200 cases of rape by such UN peacekeepers were reported in Haiti. The victims were largely underage women who received no medication, baby food, food for themselves, or other vital resources after having been raped by UN soldiers.

In early March of this year, a report was published about rape by UN “peacekeeping” forces in 21 countries around the world. The statistics cited in the report are probably just the tip of the iceberg, as there are more than 125,000 such soldiers deployed worldwide. The victims of rape committed by these forces only rarely get the opportunity to officially complain about these crimes, let alone actually see their assailants prosecuted. In addition, the soldiers often frustrate attempts to prosecute them for rape, by seeing to it that their actions are perceived as “consensual” sex. They do this by giving their victims “gifts” after the act. Indeed, there are some young women who, in their economic misery and desperation, actually agree in advance to the solders’ advances in order to obtain vital resources; but in the overall context of imperialism, this can hardly be considered “consensual sex.” By analogy, if I were to commit a robbery, and the victim of this offense were to catch up to me, if I held a pistol to the perpetrators temple and threaten him lest he give me “permission” for my taking of his money or property, this is by no means a valid example of barter. No, it’s robbery. However, it’s accurate to say that investigations by the authorities into acts of rape allegedly conducted by peacekeeping soldiers are designed in advance to confirm them as cases of consensual sex. This demonstrates, once again, how little faith we should put in Civil Justice when it comes to the victimization of the oppressed and exploited.

The Revolutionary Communist Organization LIBERATION call for:

* For the immediate expulsion of all UN peacekeepers and all other official military units and alleged “auxiliaries” of the imperialist countries of the EU, USA, Japan, Russia, China, etc. from the Congo, Haiti, Kosovo and all other semi-colonial countries!

* For trial by jury selected from among the ranks of those affected, the oppressed and the workers’ movements, to pass judgment in rape cases involving “peacekeeping” perpetrators!

* For the creation of self-defense units for women, supported by workers’ movements and all progressive organizations, to actively defend themselves against rape and to put an end to imperialist peacekeepers’ sexual attacks!